Remains of two US Navy pilots killed in plane crash near Mount Rainier will return home

The remains of the two US Navy pilots who were killed in one EA-18G Growler crash on October 15 will return home to their families from Dover Air Force Base.

The Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI) confirmed to KOMO News the news that the remains of Lt. Cmdr. Lyndsay P. Evans and Lt. Serena N. Wileman are being returned this week.

Wileman’s remains will arrive in Oak Harbor on Monday around 7 p.m. According to a NASWI spokesperson, Wallin-Stucky Funeral Home will release information about plans for the public who plan to gather along the route of Wileman’s return.

Evans’ remains will arrive in Anacortes later this week. The spokesperson said the arrival will be a “private affair” at the request of her family.

“The families of both LT Wileman and LCDR Evans would like to express their gratitude for the gracious support from the local and surrounding communities over the past few weeks,” a spokesperson told KOMO News.

A few weeks ago the The Navy has identified the pilots as Wileman and Evans after the two died in a plane crash during a “routine training flight” near Mount Rainier.

LOOK |US Navy identifies two pilots killed in EA-18G Growler jet crash near Mount Rainier

Evans was a naval aviator and Wileman was a naval aviator. Both were 31 years old and from California.

After the pilots were identified, search and rescue efforts were shifted to recovery operations. On October 16 search crews found wreckage from the plane on a “mountainside east of Mount Rainier,” according to Naval Air Station North Island.

Evans and Wileman were “two highly skilled, combat-decorated pilots who tragically lost their lives during a routine training flight,” NASWI said in a Facebook post.

President Joe Biden released a statement in October on the deaths of the two US naval aviators:

“Jill and I mourn the tragic loss of two Navy aviators, Lt. Commander Lyndsay Evans and Lt. Serena Wileman, who were killed when their EA-18G Growler aircraft crashed last Tuesday near Mount Rainier, Washington, during a routine training mission. They were among our country’s best and had recently returned to the United States after an extensive deployment to the Middle East, defending against Houthi missile and drone attacks in the Red Sea. We thank the U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, and Yakima County tribal and local authorities for their efforts to locate and recover these two brave and talented young pilots. We pray for their families, loved ones and squadron mates, and we will always honor their service and sacrifice.

NASWI wrote that Evans and Wileman had recently returned from a nine-month deployment at sea with The Zappers as part of Carrier Air Wing Three aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.

NASWI said Evans coordinated and executed multiple combat strikes in Yemen in Houthi-controlled areas during their deployment. Wileman also planned and executed multiple attacks, making each one of the few women to fly combat missions over land.